Boat anchor and retrieving means



Sept. 25, 1956 N. L. BREWER 2,764,116

BOAT ANCHOR AND RETRIEVING MEANS Filed April 26, 1955 INVENTOR Nicholas L. Brewer BY 510 M mum, Emm Q 4 ATTO R N EYS United States Patent This invention relates to boat anchors provided with retrieving means for pulling anchors out which have become stuck in the bottom, and has for its object the provision of an improved retrieving attachment for anchors which is simple in construction. and positive in its function. The retrieving attachment of my invention comprises a latch which connects the shank of the anchor to the main line which is attached to the crown of the anchor. In its normal function the line acts in the same manner as if connected to the end of the shank, but when the direction of pull is changed to a certain position the latch releases the line from the shank and the line, being attached to the crown, can then pull the anchor out backwards.

The fouling of anchors as when stuck in rocks or snags and their removal has long been a problem and many diiferent devices and attachments have been used or proposed to pull the anchor out backwards in order to effect its release. Various mechanical devices have been proposed for connecting the main line, such as a rope, chain or cable, to the shank which can release the main line from the shank and permit direct pull on the crown and cause the anchor to be pulled out backwards. The devices heretofore used or proposed leave much to be desired in the retrieving of stuck anchors for the principal reasons that they either release the main line from the shank when a certain tension has been reached and consequently they cannot be relied upon to hold under high tension when required to hold the boat, or are too complicated mechanically for reliable service.

In accordance with my invention I attach the main line to the crown of the anchor and I provide a latch on the end of the shank which engages means on or in the line, such as the links of a chain, and securely holds the line to the end of the shank regardless of the tension on the line. The latch is constructed and arranged to hold the line without release under all positions which require holding. However, when the boat or ship is moved to a position over the anchor the latch releases itself from the line and the line then pulls directly on the crown and the anchor can be retrieved by pulling it out backwards. My invention, accordingly comprises in combination a main line attached to the crown of the anchor and a latch which connects means on the line, such as the links of a chain, to the shank.

In its preferred embodiment the latch comprises a pair of hooked fingers which are pivotally connected to the shank, the hooks of which engage a link of the chain and are pressed by clamping means into frictional contact with a link of the chain to hold the latch on the chain during ordinary handling as when the anchor is being lowered or when it may be tumbled about on the bottom prior to being pulled into holding position by the line. The main line may be entirely or partly of chain, but in any event comprises at least two or three chain links, or their equivalent, located in the main line so as to be engaged by the fingers. The fingers are held against the link with just enough frictional contact to prevent accidental disengagement but not enough to prevent disengagement when retrieving the anchor. Once the anchor has taken hold in the bottom the release is determined only by the angular position that the line assumes with respect to the shank. The frictional hold of the fingers is negligible in respect to the force acting on the line and does not prevent release of the latch.

In the accompanying drawings: 6

Fig. l is a side view illustrating an anchor embodying my invention when stuck in the bottom;

2 is a view of the anchor of Fig. 1 from above; Fig. 3 is an end view of the anchor in the position of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary enlargement of the latch and shank end, and

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary enlargement of another embodiment of the invention.

Any of the many forms of boat anchors comprising one or more flukes, a crown portion, and a shank may be used in combination with a main line including a link member and the shank latch of my invention. The particular type of anchor illustrated in the drawings is similar to the anchor of my United States Letters Patent No, 2,681,631 and comprises a fluke 1, a crown portion 2 and a shank 3 in rigid connection with the fluke. As illustrated the main line 4 is at least partly of chain of the cross-link type, the alternate links being at right angles to each other. Each link which is referred to as being in a flat position such as the link 5 has connected at each end lateral links 6 and 7. One end of the chain is suitably connected as by means of the clevis 8 to the crown of the anchor. The main line may be partly rope or cable or entirely of chain.

The end of the shank 10 which is remote from the crown has a hole to which the chain engaging latch 11 is pivotally connected by means of the bolt 12.

The latch comprises two fingers 13 and 14 attached on opposite sides of the shank end 10 and these fingers are freely rotatable on the bolt 12 as shown in Figs. 1 and 4. The fingers are recessed at 15 and 16 to straddle the end of the shank and the inner faces 17 and 18 are spaced apart approximately the thickness of the link in its flat position (herein referred to as the fiat link) as shown in Fig. 3. i

As best shown in Figs. 1 and 4 the fingers are each provided with a hooked end 20 and 21. Both the hooks and the remaining portion of the fingers are just slightly less in width than the space between the adjacent lateral links 6 and 7. The hooks are curved so that they may be inserted between the lateral links with a swinging motion and when in the position shown in Fig. l and any intermediate position up to the position shown in Fig. 4 they lock the chain to the end of the shank and cannot release the chain regardless of the tension thereon when the anchor is in its normal holding position.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention the bolt is provided with spring washers 22 and 23 which bear on the fingers. By means of the wing nut 24 one can apply any desired resilient pressure on the fingers to engage the flat link with sufiicient frictional force to prevent accidental release of the fingers from the chain as in lowering the anchor or when it may be tumbling about on the bottom prior to becoming engaged.

Fig. 1 illustrates a condition not infrequently encountered in which the fluke of the anchor becomes fouled or stuck in a bottom obstacle such as a rock. When this occurs the boat can be shifted to a position directly above the anchor and when the anchor line is hauled in and assumes a vertical position as shown in Fig. 4 the hooks of the fingers slip out of their engagement with the flat and lateral links of the chain and can be swung to the position shown in broken lines in Figs. 1 and 4. The chain links are completely released from the shank but since the line is connected to the crown, the anchor can be pulled out backwards.

The modification of my invention illustrated in Fig.

2 comprises an anchor shank 3 and latch 11 as illustrated in Figs. 1 to 4. The main line includes sections of a chain of the type known as a double loop chain. Each link comprises two parts, a flat-link part 25 and a crosslink part 26 with a part of each link having a double wrap 27 of the metal. The flat-link part 25 is between the hooks 20 and 21 of the fingers as in Figs. 1 to 4 and the fingers are in frictional contact by reason of the pressure exerted thereon by the bolt of the latch. The hooks are in bearing contact with the lateral or cross-link part of the next adjacent link.

I claim:

1. In a boat anchor having a fluke, a crown and a shank, the combination therewith comprising a main line attached to the crown, said line including a link member located near the end of the shank, a latch including two rigid fingers each having a hook on one end extending at approximately right angles to the finger, the fingers being pivotally connected by a pin to the end of the shank remote from the crown and the fingers being spaced apart sufificiently to engage opposite sides of the link member in permanent holding engagement when the main line is pulled in the direction of the shank, and clamping means on the latch which hold the fingers in frictional but releasable contact with the link member, whereby holding tension on the main line is applied directly to the crown and the fingers and hooks hold the main line adjacent and in line with the shank, but an upward pull on the main line releases the hooks from the main line and enables the main line to pull on the crown.

2. In a boat anchor having a fluke, a crown, and a shank, the improvement which comprises a main line including at least a few links of chain attached to the crown of the anchor, the alternate links being flat and lateral, a latch attached to the end of the shank remote from the crown which engages the chain links and secures the main line to the shank in all holding positions, said latch comprising two rigid fingers pivotally connected to the shank and spaced apart to straddle a fiat link, a hook on each finger extending at approximately right angles from the finger, the hook of each finger having a width less than the length of a link whereby the books can be inserted over a fiat link to bear against a lateral link and with the flat link positioned therebetween, and clamping means holding the fingers in frictional but releasable contact with the flat link sufiiciently to prevent accidental release of the fingers, whereby holding tension on the main line is applied directly to the crown and the fingers and hooks hold the main line adjacent and in line with the shank, but upward pull on the main line releases the hooks from the main line and enables the main line to pull on the crown.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,476,627 Luebke et a1 Dec. 4, 1923 2,568,006 IllSChe Sept. 18, 1951 2,669,962 Christie Feb. 23, 1954 FOREIGN PATENTS 2,679 Great Britain Nov. 18, 1853 

